Does Childhood Cognition Predict Dementia Risk Later in Life?

A study in Neurology suggests education and socioeconomic position may have less to bear on thinking skills and memory over time, reports Medical News Today . The investigators compared thinking and memory tests in people at eight years old and 70 years old. "If we can understand what influences an individual's cognitive performance in later life, we can determine which aspects might be modifiable by education or lifestyle changes like exercise, diet, or sleep, which may, in turn, slow the development of cognitive decline," said University College London's Jonathan M. Schott. The researchers considered sex, childhood ability, education, and socioeconomic status, and the ability to think as a child correlated with the scores subjects achieved more than 60 years later. Those who performed in the top 25 percent as children were likely to hold their position in that segment at 70 years old — and women outperformed men in terms of thinking speed and tests of memory. Meanwhile, people with college degrees scored roughly 16 percent higher than those who had left school before age 16. Higher socioeconomic status did not significantly affect cognitive performance. Medical imaging revealed that participants with beta-amyloid plaques in the brain scored lower on tests, but the researchers saw no connection between plaques and childhood cognitive ability, socioeconomic status, education, or sex.